John Thomas Eaton
| First name | John Thomas |
|---|---|
| Last name | Eaton |
| Country of Origin | England |
| Date of Birth | 4/18/1854 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1889 |
| Submitted by | Melissa Fabbo |
Story
John Thomas Eaton was the second eldest child of Thomas Bishop Eaton (1824 Ð 1905, a Joiner/Picture Dealer) and Henrietta Cooke (1816 Ð 1895). He was a Picture Frame Maker of Eaton Brothers Fine Art Repository at 10 Old Town in Clapham, England. He migrated to Australia as a second class passenger aboard the clipper SS Sobraon in 1888 with his wife Jessie (nee Blanche) and their 4 children Ð John Bertram (1881 Ð 1966, a Frame Maker & a renowned Landscape Photographer); Albert Henry (born 1882); William James (1884 Ð 1956, a Grocer); and Stoughton Charles (1886 Ð 1953). Also on the voyage were his brother Ernest Alfred Eaton, his wife Emily (nee Blanche) and their children.
Whilst the reason for the family\’s migration to Australia is not really known, by all accounts it seems to have been to take advantage of what the new colony had to offer. Perhaps it may have been due to Clapham experiencing a significant downturn in the latter part of the 19th century, transforming it from an exclusive suburb to a more prosaic role with the advent of the ‘tube’ reaching Clapham.
The Sobraon was boarded on 25 September, 1888 and sailed out from ‘Tilbury Docks\’ (downstream from London). At about 3am, Wednesday 26 September the clipper left ‘Gravesend\’ for ‘Plymouth\’ and then started her voyage proper by crossing the ‘Bay of Biscay\’ en route to Australia.
She was towed as far as ‘Beachy Head\’ by a steam tug, and having a good wind made a good start on her voyage. She sailed to the south of the ‘Isle of Wight\’ after which a dense fog arose and the clipper was unable to proceed. Instead of arriving at ‘Plymouth\’ on the Friday she remained at a standstill just 6 miles off the harbour, the fog horn blowing a mournful sound all day and part of the night. Like the Avalanche, the Sobraon ran into bad weather in the Channel and was for a time feared to have sunk.
By Saturday morning the fog had cleared away but there was still no favourable breeze. At about 10am a little tug, which had been searching for the Sobraon, was spotted making its way to the clipper. She was soon linked to the tug which took her safely into ‘Plymouth\’ harbour. Many passengers went ashore, some until the following day and on the Sunday many new passengers came aboard.
At about midday the clipper was again linked to a steam tug and towed out to sea, where at about 3pm she was dependent entirely on her sails and a good favourable breeze.
The trip lasted 102 days according to the diary of another passenger, Julia Sydenham – who referred to the Sobraon as an ‘invalid Ship’, as most passengers were suffering from chest and throat infections. As it turns out John Thomas Eaton\’s brother Ernest died in 1889 soon after arriving in Australia, perhaps from such an illness.
John Thomas Eaton opened a framing business in Prahran Markets in Melbourne, Victoria soon after his arrival in 1889, although little more is known about these early years. Three more children were born to John Thomas Eaton and Jessie after their arrival in Victoria Ð Ruby Margaret (1890 Ð 1955); Milner Gordon (1893 Ð 1965); and Violet May (1898 Ð 1974).
The Sands and McDougall business directories list picture frame makers by the business name ‘J Eaton\’ and ‘Eaton Bros\’ at 187 and later at 183 Commercial Road South Yarra from 1892 until 1902. Later he opened the business ‘JB and JT Eaton\’ with his eldest son, John Bertram Eaton (JB), who later became a noted Australian Landscape Photographer. Jack Cato, author of “The Story of the Camera in Australia”, refers to JB Eaton as the ‘Poet of the Australian Landscape\’. A large collection of his landscape photographs is held by the Australian National Library in Canberra.
According to Ern Sherman in his booklet “Where Life Took on Real Meaning” the Eaton family was heavily involved in the establishment and ongoing support of the South Yarra Church of Christ.
John Thomas Eaton died on 27 July 1944 at 33 McGowan Avenue, Glenhuntly, Victoria. He is buried at The Necropolis in Springvale, Victoria (Section 10, Grave 18). His wife Jessie Eaton (nee Blanche) died in 1947 in Mont Park, Victoria and is also buried at The Necropolis in Springvale, Victoria (Section 10, Grave 18).
Today there are over 200 descendants of John Thomas Eaton & Jessie Blanche.